Due to what it called a “substantial history of district courts ignoring and resisting circuit court cy pres concerns and rulings in class action cases,” the Eighth Circuit recently clarified the legal principles surrounding...more

Over the last several years, federal courts of appeals have been closely scrutinizing cy pres distributions to charitable organizations in class action settlements. This includes opinions by the First Circuit, Third Circuit...more

In the last five years, the use of cy pres relief in settlements has become particularly controversial. Various appellate courts have expressed suspicion about the use of cy pres in questionable settlements. Even Justice...more

In a 5-to-4 decision, the Texas Supreme Court rebuffed the Texas attorney general’s attempt to undo a cy pres award using the state’s Unclaimed Property Act. The cy pres award was a result of a settlement between defendant...more

Cy pres disbursements have become a popular feature of class action settlement agreements, but given the recent denial of certiorari in Marek v. Lane, Supreme Court guidance in the law of cy pres will have to wait until...more

On November 4, 2013, the Supreme Court of the United States declined to review the Ninth Circuit’s approval of Facebook’s $9.5 million privacy class action settlement, which, with the exception of attorneys’ fees and “modest...more

The district court in Dennis v. Kellogg recently granted preliminary approval of a revised class action settlement. Kellogg is a class action alleging unjust enrichment, as well as violation of California’s Unfair Competition...more

On February 19, 2013, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit vacated a district court order approving a class action settlement, holding that a district court must specifically determine that a claims-made...more